Beliefs

God

God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. Everything has been created by Him and for Him. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God. God is the one living and true God. He is infinite and perfect in holiness. God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent.

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal and one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived of the Holy Spirit, and lived a sinless human life. He offered Himself as a substitution, payment and justification for the sins of all men by dying on the cross, the perfect sacrifice. He was buried and after three days, He arose from the dead to demonstrate His power over sin and death. After His literal and physical resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into Heaven. He is now exalted at the right hand of God where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry as Mediator, Intercessor, and Advocate. Christ will return to judge the living and the dead and to reign as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is co-equal and one with the Father and the Son. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every believer from the moment of salvation. He is the source of the power for regeneration of the believer, understanding of spiritual truth, and living a life that is pleasing to God. The Christian is to seek to live under His control daily.

The Bible

The Bible is God’s Word, written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. Both the Old and New Testament focus on God and the redeeming work of Jesus Christ. It is fully inspired by God, inerrant, perfect, life giving, and life changing. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. The Bible is Absolute Truth, the final authority for faith and life.

Man

Man is created in the image of God. He is the supreme object of God’s creation. Since Adam’s disobedience of God, all men are guilty of Adam’s original sin, unable to come to God on their own, and have a nature of disobedience towards God, which is called “sin.” This attitude separates man from God. Those who have placed their trust in the finished work of Christ are forgiven and adopted as children of God, and they will spend eternity with Him.

Sanctity of Human Life

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life.

Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality

God designed marriage to reflect the beauty and permanence of Christ’s loving relationship with His Bride, the Church. Therefore, He established marriage to be a life-long, exclusive relationship between one man and one woman.

We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person. We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning, and that is, the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of sexual immorality, including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography, is sinful and offensive to God. We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by the church in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, agree to and abide by this Statement on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality. We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of the church.

Salvation

Salvation is a gift from God to man. Man can never make up for his sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can man be saved from sin’s penalty.

Eternity

Man was created to exist forever. He will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is to exist eternally in Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life in Heaven. Because God gives man eternal life through Jesus Christ, the believer is secure in that salvation is for eternity. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. Man serves God out of a heart of gratitude for the gift of salvation. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives this security.

Church

The church is the living spiritual body of Christ. Christ is the head of the church, which is made up of all born again believers. The purpose of the church is to glorify God. The local church is an assembly of believers that comes together for worship, for growth in the image of Christ by the teaching of the Word, for observance of the Ordinances, for service using spiritual gifts, for prayer, and for fellowship.

Ordinances (Baptism and Lord’s Supper)

The Lord Jesus Christ has instructed two ordinances to the local church, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is the action of the believer; the full immersion is a symbol of the union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. Baptism is the outward symbol of beginning the Christian life.

The Lord’s Supper is to be observed repeatedly throughout the Christian’s life as a sign of continuing fellowship with Christ, as a remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice for the believer’s sins. The bread is broken to symbolize the breaking of Christ’s body, and when the cup is poured out, it symbolizes the pouring out of Christ’s blood for the believer.